The Tar-Aiym Krang: A Pip & Flinx Adventure

Moth was a beautiful planet, the only one with wings - two great golden clouds suspended in space around it. Here was a wide-open world for any venture a man might scheme. The planet attracted unwary travelers, hardened space-sailors, and merchant buccaneers - a teeming, constantly shifting horde that provided a comfortable income for certain quick-witted fellows like Flinx and his pet flying snake Pip.

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When his latest mission has an unexpected outcome, Adam finds himself free of his explosive control collar and honor bound to protect a mysterious woman. Now he is on an alien planet, and they are both being hunted by the most powerful mega corporation in the solar system. Their only escape lays at the helm of an experimental starship hidden beyond countless layers of military security.

A Fallen Empire Omnibus: Books 1-3

A fighter pilot on a mission to reunite with her daughter. A cyborg soldier on a quest to regain his humanity. Mortal enemies during the war, they must now work together to salvage a 70-year-old freighter and navigate the gauntlet of pirates, scavengers, mercenaries, and other pitfalls that stand in their way after the fall of the largest empire mankind has ever known.

We Are Legion (We Are Bob): Bobiverse, Book 1

Bob Johansson has just sold his software company and is looking forward to a life of leisure. There are places to go, books to read, and movies to watch. So it's a little unfair when he gets himself killed crossing the street. Bob wakes up a century later to find that corpsicles have been declared to be without rights, and he is now the property of the state. He has been uploaded into computer hardware and is slated to be the controlling AI in an interstellar probe looking for habitable planets.

Starship's Mage Omnibus: Starship's Mage Series #1

In a galaxy tied together by the magic of the elite Jump Magi, Damien Montgomery is a newly graduated member of their number. With no family or connections to find a ship, he is forced into service on an interstellar freighter known to be hunted by pirates. When he takes drastic action to save the Blue Jay from their pursuers, he sets in motion a sequence of events beyond his control and attracts enemies on both sides of the law.

The Warlock in Spite of Himself: Warlock of Gramarye, Book 1

Welcome to Gramayre - where witches, warlocks, elves, and gnomes are real; where a spoiled girl-queen and an army of teenage witches, and ragtag beggars battle an overwhelming force of rebel knights and time-travelling anarchists for the future of the most unique, and perhaps most important, planet in the galaxy.

Hunter

They came after the Diseray. Some were terrors ripped from our collective imaginations, remnants of every mythology across the world. And some were like nothing anyone had ever dreamed up, even in their worst nightmares. Now, the luckiest Cits live in enclosed communities, behind walls that keep them safe from the hideous monsters fighting to break through.

Perilous Waif: Alice Long, Book 1

My name is Alice Long, and I've always known I was different. When I was little I used to climb up to the highest branches of the housetree at night, and watch the starships docking at the orbital stations high above. Forty meters off the ground, watching ships 30,000 kilometers overhead, with senses that could pick out radar pings and comm chatter as easily as the ships themselves. It all seemed perfectly natural at the time.

Monster Hunter International

Five days after Owen Zastava Pitt pushed his insufferable boss out of a 14th story window, he woke up in the hospital with a scarred face, an unbelievable memory, and a job offer. It turns out that monsters are real. All the things from myth, legend, and B-movies are out there, waiting in the shadows. Some of them are evil, and some are just hungry. Monster Hunter International is the premier eradication company in the business. And now Owen is their newest recruit.

The Arrival: The Evaran Chronicles Prequel

Jake Melkins is a few months away from turning 21. By the Seceltor Empire's laws, he will have to go to a breeding camp, or directly into slavery. Neither choice appeals to him. All this changes with the arrival of a space-and-time-traveling being known as Evaran at the space-station-turned-rest-stop that Jake lives on.

Date Night on Union Station: EarthCent Ambassador Series, Book 1

Kelly Frank is EarthCent's top diplomat on Union Station, but her job description has always been a bit vague. The pay is horrible and she's in hock up to her ears for her furniture, which is likely to end up in a corridor because she's behind on rent for her room. Sometimes she has to wonder if the career she has put ahead of her personal life for 15 years is worth it.

Viridian Gate Online: Cataclysm: The Viridian Gate Archives, Book 1

An extinction-level asteroid, 213 Astraea, is cannonballing toward Earth. Collision, imminent. An international team of scientists is working around the clock to avert the cataclysm - few are optimistic. World governments are preparing for impact with deep earth bio-dome bunkers, but only a select few lottery winners will be saved. Jack Mitchel, a 32-year-old EMT living in a tiny studio apartment on the west coast, isn't one of those winners.

Rookie Privateer: Privateer Tales, Book 1

When you are old enough to finally become an Earth Mars citizen, everything should be perfect. Right? Not for Liam Hoffen. He's stuck on a mining asteroid called Colony 40, helping his father work a claim that is never going to pay out. His best friend, Nick James is set for life in James' Rental business and Liam just discovered that the girl he's known forever thinks he's pretty great and now she's leaving for the Mars Naval Academy.

Strange Music: A Pip & Flinx Adventure

Empathic Flinx and his minidrag, Pip, have saved the universe more times than they can count, but the return of an old friend pulls the duo from their retirement and plunges them into a story of intrigue and imagination. The planet of Largess has recently opened itself to trade with the human-dominated Commonwealth. But when the daughter of a powerful chieftain goes missing, authorities believe a covert agent to be the cause. They need someone to track down the princess and roust the troublemaker and to do so without alerting the whole planet.

The Rowan: Tower and Hive, Book 1

The kinetically gifted, trained in mind/machine gestalt, are the most valued citizens of the Nine Star League. Using mental powers alone, these few Prime Talents transport ships, cargo, and people between Earth's Moon, Mars' Demos and Jupiter's Callisto.

Cadicle: An Epic Space Opera Series, Volumes 1-3

When Cris leaves Tararia to pursue his telekinetic abilities, he thinks he's started a new life. Years later, he learns that freedom was always an illusion - he and his family are at the center of an elaborate galactic conspiracy. Written in the style of classic sci-fi from the Golden Age, the Cadicle series follows three generations of the Sietinen Dynasty as they discover their roles in a secret war. Torn by duty and morality, their decisions will change the course of the Taran civilization.

J Carroll says:"I enjoyed it. Great character development, good storyline with some interesting locations."

Duel in the Dark: Blood on the Stars, Book 1

The Confederation has fought three wars against the forces of the totalitarian Union. Three generations of its warriors have gone off to war, held the line against the larger, more powerful enemy. Now the fourth conflict is imminent, and the Confederation's navy is on alert, positioned behind the frontier, waiting for the attack it knows is coming.

Publisher's Summary

He was just a freckle-faced, red-headed kid with green eyes and a strangely campelling stare when Mather Mastiff first saw him an the auctioneer's block. One hundred credits and he was hers.

For years the old woman was his only family. She loved him, fed him, taught him everything she knew - even let him keep the deadly flying snake he called Pip.Then Mother Mastiff mysteriously disappeared and Flinx took Pip to tail her kidnappers. Across the forests and swamps of the winged world called Moth, their only weapons were Pip's venom . . . and Flinx's unusual Talents.

BONUS AUDIO: Includes an exclusive introduction written and read by author Alan Dean Foster.

I thought this book was extremely well done. I enjoy Flinx's personality. Although he does have a special "talent", it is his intelligence that gets him through most of the adventures in this book and I love a protagonist with a brain. :)

Alan Dean Foster's style has always been to start a story with an interesting yet plausible premise then direct it to an ever and ever outrageous conclusion. The funny thing is, as you get sucked into the story you never quite see how outrageous it has become. This was not the first book he wrote in this series, but it is the start of the story line. Therefor Foster had to fit the story within pre-existing story restrictions. It was well done and tidy, not needing to have read other stories to understand this one, and not feeling like there was no ending.

This is the first chronological novel of the Pip and Flinx series, a series about a boy with strange telepathic abilities and his pet killer snake. In this novel, scientists who created Pip want to get him back and proceed with kidnapping his adoptive mother to get to him. He then goes on a quest to rescue her and figure out what these people want. Along the way he learns more about himself as well.

The pacing was pretty good in this book and it did a great job of explaining where Pip and Flinx came from and the relationship with Flinx's adoptive mother. It is very much in the style and caliber of the other P&F books I've read, and I found it to be fairly quick and enjoyable. The "evil" characters in the book didn't have as much development as they could have, but I didn't find that it detracted from the story all that much.

The narration was top-notch and I have no complaints with it.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this and look forward to reading the other books in the series.

In my humble opinion this book is the best of the series. You are introduced to Flynx,Pip, and Mother Mastiff. Mother Mastiff is a great character, very human, flawed, loved by Flinx. The story is fun, full of action, and touching, a great beginning to the series.

SERIES INFO:This is (chronologically) Book #1 of 14 in the completed "Pip & Flinx" series, all of which are available on audio. If you prefer to read in publication order, it is #5.

SUMMARY:This is probably my favorite of the Pip & Flinx adventures that I have read (I am currently a little over half way through the series.)

CHARACTERS:Flinx: His ethics aren't what I would consider acceptable, specifically regarding other people's property. But considering his lack of true parental guidance, I guess it's to be expected. He is such a complex yet essentially likable character though.

Mother Mastiff: Very interesting as a fictional character, but not someone I would entrust with an actual child. She does really love him, and makes some unselfish decisions to try and protect him.

WORLDBUILDING:Let me start by saying that I spent many years in the Pacific NW of the US (where it rains a lot), and I think I would go crazy living on a planet where it rains nearly constantly.

This is not a "central" world; so, although there is lots of tech that is more advanced, it is mostly the little things. A favorite piece of tech is the oil based version of a water bed (it sounds nice & toasty, and I'm writing this in the Fall). And I really like the large riding bird that Flinx eventually rents.

The book doesn't really try to get you up to speed on all the details of the vast Humanx Commonwealth. That's actually OK, because Flinx's "world" is much smaller at this point. I never felt like I had a firm grasp on the details of the market area Flinx grew up in, however; but once we got out into the forest, the descriptions were great.

PLOT:This is the first book, chronologically, in Flinx's story, but it was not written first. In a way, it is just a much longer version of all the prequel novellas being written now days to fill in a character's backstory. But there is also a fully developed adventure here as well.

That mix means that we jump fairly quickly through Flinx's childhood before getting to the main body of the story. I really like the beginning, with his meeting Mother Mastiff. The rest of his childhood seemed a bit rushed. The last hour is very engrossing, and does a good job of setting things up for the remaining books in the series.

HIGHLIGHTS:--The moment when Flinx first takes Mother Mastiff's hand--There are some interesting perspectives on who are "good people" vs "bad people" and how outward behavior and attitudes can be one thing while your goals can be another.

CONTENT NOTES(?): Children can be "adopted" from the government by paying a fee (i.e. slavery, although they don't like to call it that). Abuse, by some, of the process and the children is hinted at. / There is a group of people who basically feel that any horror is justified if it is for the greater good. / Flinx is a teenage boy and experiences the usual physical & emotional responses to an attractive older woman.

I COULD HAVE DONE WITHOUT: Some swearing / I don't think it is a good idea to give a small child complete freedom. / Theft

NARRATION:Character voices differentiated = Yes, mostly through mild accents & manner of speaking. It is not strong for minor characters. He has a very deep voice, so neither the child nor female voices sound authentic; but they are acceptable. / Phrasing, Pacing & Pronunciation = The non-dialog parts are a bit flat / Emoting = Good enough, for dialog / Speed = Slow. I listened on 1.5, rather than my usual 1.25, and it is still a touch slow.

I've read a few of the Flinx books before, but so long ago I can't remember details. This was written after some of the others to provide a background and so I felt it was a useful place to start. The story is fast paced and in some ways we are ahead of the hero, understanding what is happening to him and his development of his talent more that he does.
I sometimes find this narrator a little difficult, as he has an odd way of delivering spoken dialogue, but I was usually able to put that out of my head. The rest of his narration is very good and he has a lovely, rich voice.
I look forward to hearing others in the series

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

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